Amateur wrestling Wettkampf- und Verbandsmanagement

Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced at Olympic, collegiate, scholastic, and other levels. There are two international wrestling styles performed at the Olympic Games, freestyle and Greco-Roman, both of which are governed by the United World Wrestling (UWW).

At the middle school and high school levels in the United States, wrestlers compete in scholastic wrestling. In collegiate wrestling, there are minor differences in some scholastic wrestling rules.

The rise in the popularity of the combat sport mixed martial arts (MMA) has increased interest in amateur wrestling due to its effectiveness within the sport and its consideration as a core discipline.

Greco-Roman and freestyle differ in what holds are permitted; in Greco-Roman, the wrestlers are permitted to hold and attack only above the waist. In both Greco-Roman and freestyle, points can be scored in the following ways:

Takedown: A wrestler gaining control over their opponent from a neutral position.

Reversal: A wrestler gaining control over their opponent from a defensive position.

Exposure or the Danger Position: A wrestler exposing their opponent's back to the mat, also awarded if one's back is to the mat but the wrestler is not pinned.

Penalty: Various infractions (e.g. striking the opponent, acting with brutality or intent to injure, using illegal holds, etc.). (Under the 2004–2005 changes to the international styles, a wrestler whose opponent takes an injury time-out receives one point unless the injured wrestler is bleeding). Any wrestler stepping out of bounds while standing in the neutral position during a match is penalized by giving their opponent a point.

As in the international styles, collegiate wrestling awards points for takedowns and reversals. Penalty points are awarded in collegiate wrestling according to the current rules, which penalize moves that would impair the life or limb of the opponent. However, the manner how infractions are penalized and points awarded to the offended wrestler differ in some aspects from the international styles. Collegiate wrestling also awards points for:

Near Fall: This is similar to the exposure (or danger position) points given in Greco-Roman and freestyle. A wrestler scores points for holding their opponent's shoulders or scapulae to the mat for several seconds while their opponent is still not pinned.

Time Advantage or Riding Time: On the college level, the wrestler who controlled their opponent on the mat for the most time is awarded a point; provided that the difference between the two wrestlers' time advantage is at least one minute.

Escape: A wrestler getting from a defensive position to a neutral position. This is no longer a way to score in freestyle or Greco-Roman.

In the international styles, the format is now two three-minute periods. A wrestler wins the match when they were able to get more points than their opponent or 10 points lead in two rounds. For example, if one competitor gets a 10–0 lead in the first period, they will win by the superiority of points. Only a fall, injury default, or disqualification terminates the match; all other modes of victory result only in period termination.

This format replaced the old format of three two-minute periods played best two out of three. One side effect of the old format was that the losing wrestler could outscore the winner. For example, periods may be scored 3–2, 0–4, 1–0, leading to a total score of 4–6 but a win for the wrestler scoring fewer points.

In collegiate wrestling, the period structure is different. A college match consists of one three-minute period, followed by two two-minute periods, with an overtime round if necessary. A high school match typically consists of three two-minute periods, with an overtime round if necessary. Under the standard rules for collegiate wrestling, draws are not possible; this rule is sometimes modified for young wrestlers.

A match can be won in the following ways:

Fall: A fall, also known as a pin, occurs when one wrestler holds both of their opponent's shoulders on the mat simultaneously.

Technical superiority: A form of mercy rule where the match is declared over when a point differential is achieved. In American folkstyle wrestling, the point difference is 15 points, in freestyle, it is 10 points, and in Greco-Roman, it is 8 points. Folkstyle terms this a technical fall and freestyle and Greco-Roman refer to it as a technical superiority.

Decision

Default: If one wrestler is unable to continue participating for any reason or fails to show up on the mat after their name is called three times before the match begins, their opponent is declared the winner of the match by default, forfeit, or withdrawal.

Injury: If one wrestler is injured and unable to continue, the other wrestler is declared the winner. This is also referred to as a medical forfeit or injury default. The term also encompasses situations where wrestlers become ill, take too many injury time-outs, or bleed uncontrollably. If a wrestler is injured by their opponent's illegal maneuver and cannot continue, the wrestler at fault is disqualified.

Disqualification: Normally, if a wrestler is assessed three Cautions for breaking the rules, they are disqualified. Under other circumstances, such as flagrant brutality, the match may be ended immediately and the wrestler disqualified and removed from the tournament.

While having similar victory conditions with Greco-Roman and freestyle, such as wins by fall, decision, injury, and disqualification, victory conditions in collegiate wrestling differ on some points from the international styles:

Fall: A fall, also known as a pin, occurs when one wrestler holds any part of both of their opponent's shoulders or both of their opponent's shoulder blades (scapulae) in continuous contact with the mat. The fall must be held in collegiate wrestling for two seconds in high school wrestling matches and one second in college wrestling matches. A win by fall